Hackers have shown themselves to be resourceful in gathering information that allows them to commit their crimes. We have seen hackers use employees and other “out of wallet” information to gain access to data. Recent developments in the Target litigation provides a reminder that hackers may also use documents filed in court in data breach cases to commit crimes.

On July 24, 2015, the Financial Institutions in the Target 2013 data breach case (In re: Target Customer Data Security Breach Litigation) filed a Motion To UnsealCertain Documents Cited In And Attached To Plaintiff’s Motion For Class Certification. In the Motion, the Financial Institutions claim that “Target has taken the position that every document it has ever produced in this case is ‘Confidential’ or ‘Highly Confidential’ and should be concealed.” The current dispute stems from a Protective Order entered by the court on June 25, 2014, that allowed the parties to designate certain documents as “Confidential” or “Highly Confidential.” Of course, under this Protective Order, any document marked “Confidential” would not be accessible through the court’s electronic filing system. In its Motion, the Financial Institutions argue that it has not been able to locate a single document produced by Target that hasn’t been designated as confidential.

Read more at http://www.cyberrisknetwork.com/2015/08/19/target-litigation-reveals-concern-hackers-may-use-court-documents-to-gain-information/